Lighting systems, lighting devices, as well as illumination devices and transmission devices of a generic kind are basically comprehensively known in the prior art so that a separate document for proof is not required. By means of lighting systems spaces, for instance outside or also inside buildings, are lit in a predeterminable way in order to allow for or support an intended use. For the lighting systems more and more frequently lighting devices are employed, which besides an illuminating device that emits light in a predeterminable way, also comprise a transmission device, which is at least configured to wirelessly emit specific identification data, for instance in the way of radio broadcasting. Preferably this transmission device is configured to emit the radio signal in the manner of near field radio communication. Such a transmission device is also referred to as a “beacon” in the prior art.
So-called beacons can be combined with illumination devices in order to provide lamp-specific or also other information by means of their radio signal. The beacon technology is based on a transmitter system or on a transmitter-receiver system. A beacon (in German also referred to as Leuchtfeuer, Bake, Peilsender or the like) is a small, mostly battery-operated sender, which emits a radio signal, preferably at definable time intervals, for instance based on a Bluetooth low energy standard (BLE). The radio signal of a beacon is characterized by the identification data, which for instance comprise a unique identification number, for instance referred to in English as a universally unique identifier (UUID). Beacons can be used for assigning an, in particular digital, identification to objects and/or places. Objects on which a beacon is mounted, as well as places at which a beacon is installed, for instance on a wall or a ceiling, in this way can be identified by communication terminals, for instance smart phones, laptops and/or the like, in the signal field of the beacon.
With the aid of a beacon thereby for instance a place can be identified or a localization be performed. By way of arranging one or several beacons within a predetermined area, for instance a building area or the like, a kind of radio-based grid can be provided, which allows for a communication terminal present in this area by means of its radio interface, in particular BLE interface, as well as corresponding evaluation options, to determine a position of its own. The individual identification data of the installed beacons in this connection provide a place with an identification, on the basis of which the communication end device, at least approximately can determine the position. In principle in any case a transmission range of a respective beacon can be determined. By suitable evaluation, for instance using predetermined algorithms or the like, the precision of the determined position, for instance whilst evaluating a signal strength and/or the like, can be improved. Preferably, the communication terminal can access data of a data storage for this purpose, for instance via a communication network such as the internet, a mobile radio network and/or the like. The data storage for instance can be a cloud server or the like. Here for instance the identification data and associated position data can be recorded in a map.
If the communication terminal comes within reach of the transmission device or the beacon, it can determine its own position on the basis of the determined identification data thus for instance via a server request. Whilst using further radio signals of further transmission devices or beacons by means of localization algorithms the precision can be improved, in particular from a receiving field strength of the respective radio signal of the transmission device or of the beacon a distance from the respective transmission device or the respective beacon can be determined.
In principle in the lighting technology in the case of lighting systems of a generic kind or their lighting devices transmission devices or beacons can be installed. In this connection in particular the advantage is used that a light installation provides a permanent access to energy in order to supply electrical energy to the transmission device or the beacon. This leads to an advantage, namely that the transmission device or the beacon requires no energy supply of its own in the form of a battery and thus corresponding maintenance expense can be saved. Moreover, this embodiment allows for also selecting settings of the transmission device or the beacon, which involve a high energy consumption, without this having to have an effect on an operating life of the beacon. Moreover, installation processes of such transmission devices or beacons and the light technology can be standardized. A further advantage is a defined locking position of the transmission device or the beacon, which is preferably selected such that the transmission device or the beacon are protected against manipulation. Thereby, a place thus can be assigned a reliably safe identification.
An overview about use potentials of the integration of a transmission device or a beacon into a lighting device is rendered from the following, non-exhaustive list.                The energy supply of the light installation can be used instead of an energy supply by a battery in order to reduce for instance the life cycle costs of the transmission device or the beacon.        The electrical energy supply of the lighting system or the lighting device can be used in order to adjust transmission parameters of the signal of the transmission device or of the beacon to a service and not to an available remaining energy amount or to parameters of the battery. For instance frequent transmission cycles generate a high precision of the respective service, however, this can also lead to a raised energy consumption.        The exchange of the battery of conventional transmission devices or beacons involves risks, for instance with regard to handling errors.        An unavailability of services can be avoided by an uninterrupted energy supply of the transmission device or of the beacon.        An installation place below a ceiling can be advantageous for a signal propagation of the signal of the transmission device or the beacon.        An installation place below the ceiling can render the overall system more robust against interferences or shadings through other objects at floor level in contrast to an installation of the transmission device or of the beacon itself at floor level.        The transmission device or the beacon can be protected against manipulations or unauthorized access—whether inadvertently or intentionally.        The lighting system as well as services, such as for instance localization services or the like, can be offered as overall system “from a single source”.        Moreover, the possibility of using a safe communication network of the lighting system exists for instance in order to configure the transmission devices or the beacon or to interlink the transmission devices or the beacons with each other.        A standardization of installation processes of transmission devices or beacons and the lighting system can be facilitated.        Further, there exists the possibility of coupling to further system elements of a peripheral building infrastructure via the communication network of the lighting system, for instance with elements of the safety technology and/or the like.        An optically appealing lighting system can be provided since the transmission device or the beacon can be arranged invisibly in the respective lighting device or in the lighting system.        
A beacon can be integrated as a transmission device within a lighting device of a lighting system. The lighting system can comprise a multitude of lighting devices. The lighting device besides the beacon comprises the illumination device, which by means of one or several illumination means provides the desired lighting function. The beacon and the illumination device are in communication with each other. The beacon is preferably arranged to be integrated within the lighting device, in particular within a common housing. This means that there is no need to provide a separate housing for the beacon. Thereby the beacon can be simultaneously arranged to be protected so that the intended function can be provided with high reliability. Further lighting devices of the lighting system can be designed to be preferably identical to the lighting device. Moreover, of course, also in particular with regard to their illumination devices different lighting devices can be provided. In this connection the transmission devices or beacons, however, can be of equal design.
The beacon is designed to wirelessly emit a radio signal with the identification data that are specific to the beacon. Preferably the emission is effected by radio whilst using a BLE standard. The beacon further comprises preferably a control unit, which comprises a computing unit as well as a storage unit. In the storage unit an executable computer program, which is provided for the computing unit, so that by means of the computing unit a predetermined control function can be realized.
The beacon can further be in communication with further beacons. The communication link can equally be configured as a wireless communication link according to the BLE standard. Equally as well, though, a wired communication link can be envisaged. The communication link between the beacon and the further beacons is preferably bidirectional in order to be able to exchange signals, in particular data.
Moreover, the beacon can be connected to a data infrastructure device via a further communication link. The data infrastructure device can serve for controlling the lighting system, here in particular the lighting devices of the lighting system. The infrastructure device can for instance comprise the internet or a central service provision server. The data infrastructure device can further serve for controlling and/or transmitting data. The local beacon of the lighting device can be configured as mere transmission device for emitting radio signals of the kind of a radio broadcasting operation or also as combined transmitter-receiver device, which besides the emitting of radio signals of the kind of a radio broadcasting operation also facilitates a receiving of radio signals or even a bidirectional communication with a communication terminal.
The radio signal of the beacon can be received by means of communication terminals, such as for instance a smart phone, a laptop and/or the like.
According to an example of use users or devices may possibly be faced with the challenge of having to orientate themselves, to navigate within an area, or wishing to find or use other local digital services, such as for instance apps, app functions, Google maps, Lightify, a light control and/or the like. The lighting system with integrated beacons within a predetermined area can become a localization or orientation system for these use potentials. With a thus realizable self-localization of the communication terminal now services can be provided, for instance a navigation, a provision of site-specific information, services and/or the like.
One aspect of the beacon technology is the possibility of configuring typical parameters, such as for instance a signal strength, a transmission interval and/or the like of the beacon. With different configurations various application scenarios can be individually supported. If for instance a high service quality with regard to a precise localization in short intervals is desired, for instance in an indoor navigation, for instance very short sending intervals may need to be configured.
In particular in the case of digitally controlled lighting systems, for instance using Digital Addressable Lighting Interfaces (DALI), it should be possible to unambiguously identify which illumination means or which illumination device is arranged at which place in order to facilitate by means of digital light control an exact control of the illumination devices or their illumination means in a certain area. The lighting devices or the illumination devices, respectively, require for this purpose a clear address, which reflects their position within a predetermined area. The person skilled in the art refers to such assignment of lighting devices or illumination devices, respectively, to corresponding positions or addresses, respectively, also as “commissioning”. In this connection preferably several pieces of information should be combined, namely an unambiguous identification information of a respective lighting device or illumination device, preferably of the kind of unambiguous specific identification data, an installation site of the respective lighting device or illumination device within a predetermined area, i.e., a physical address of the lighting device or the illumination device, as well as an identification of the lighting device or the illumination device, i.e. for instance their digital address.
The digital address of a lighting device or illumination device can for instance be transmitted via a powerline communication or a similar power-based communication solution via the energy propagation to a control or data processing unit. The illumination device or a ballast of the illumination device can thus register with the digital address with the control unit. Thus, however, the information at which physical place within the predetermined area the illumination device is actually arranged is not yet available. This information, however, is required if only a defined area, for instance only a conference room or part thereof or the like, is to be lit.
Presently lighting systems or illumination means and at the same time their sites as a rule cannot be easily electronically identified. Typically, it can only be recognized via a sticker or an embossment, for instance on a housing of the lighting device or the illumination device, what kind of lighting device or illumination device or of the illumination means it is. Another elaborate possibility consists in having every digitally registered illumination device blink individually as part of the illumination system and manually mark a position information within a layout.
In order to connect illumination devices and/or illumination means as part of the illumination system efficiently with a light management system (LMS), it would be advantageous to have at one's disposal one or several electronical or digital identification numbers for identification of the overall system or of individual components of the overall system.
A specific problem further consists in the fact that as a rule in an installation plan positions of the illumination devices or illumination means for a lighting area or a service area are fixed. This provides a person in charge of installation with a guideline as to which of the delivered or commissioned lighting devices or illumination devices, for instance with regard to a lamp type or the like, is to be arranged in which position of the area, for instance the building, according to the installation plan.
Site-specific services or services, such as for instance navigation of a user or the like, by means of a beacon should be permanently and without restriction available to the user within a predetermined area. This requires besides an uninterrupted electrical energy supply also a regular maintenance or possibly also updating of computing programs such as for instance the firmware or the like.
Services using a beacon, such as for instance a navigation by means of a communication end device, should be available to the users preferably permanently and if possible without restriction. This requires amongst other things an uninterrupted energy supply for the beacons. Nevertheless, it turned out to be an obstacle that communication terminals as a rule are configured for a predetermined, in particular proprietary, communication protocol. The communication protocols, which meanwhile are in use, as a rule are based on the BLE standard as radio standard. Depending on the respective communication terminal specific communication protocol the communication terminals in some cases respond quite differently. A beacon protocol established in this connection is for example the “iBeacon” Protocol® of the company Apple Inc. Communication terminals based on the operating system iOS® of the company Apple Inc. can for instance receive and process a radio signal according to the iBeacon Protocol®. Moreover, further such beacon protocols are known, such as for instance “Eddiestone”® of the company Google or the beacon protocol “AltBeacon”, which is an open source protocol. In order to allow for an as broad as possible application of the beacon technology, it may thus be necessary to employ several beacon protocols in parallel. This raises the problem for the manufacture of beacons, in particular with regard to their energy supply as well as the possibly reliable provision of a corresponding service and the like. Of course, there is the possibility of providing for each beacon protocol an adjusted beacon of its own. This, however, turns out to be expensive, in particular with regard to the energy supply and/or constructive aspects concerning the spatial arrangement of the beacon. Moreover, the number of the specific identification data would be correspondingly increased.
If for instance a manager of a supermarket would like to make sure that the offered services, such as for instance a navigation of a customer through the supermarket or the like, are available without restriction to any customer with any communication terminal, according to the possible manufacturer-specific or operating system specific communication terminal adjusted beacons would need to be installed. However, this leads to the requirement that for instance in the case of two beacon protocols at least double the number of beacons need to be installed. This leads to high investment costs, high life cycle costs due to a corresponding battery change, a high installation expense as well as a high installation expense for fixing a corresponding beacon protocol and the like. Moreover, also problems with the signal processing through the communication terminals can be caused if the various beacons for instance are not orchestrated with regard to a transmission time and a radio signal strength or the like.
It is therefore the task of the invention to improve a functionality of the transmission device of the lighting device.